For my first trip overseas, I met my sister in Copenhagen, Denmark for Thanksgiving.
Traveling with a passport wasn’t as bad as I’d imagined it. I’ve watched too many tv dramas and seen too many news reports of foreign travelers getting lost, kidnapped, or misdirected to the wrong gate due to language barriers.
Pro tip: Most of the world is starting to speak English, so communication is not as difficult these days. It is useful to have patients, mime what you’re trying to say, and do try to speak slower while enunciating your words (in any language). It shows that you are trying and sometimes that’s all it takes.
Thank goodness, I wasn’t traveling alone. My younger brother was a great comfort in monitoring my stress and frantic schedule ticking.
Once I relaxed taking in the sights, sounds, and food was easy.
Oddly enough, it didn’t feel like we had gone on a thirteen hour flight to another country. Until, someone tried to speak to us in Danish or we tried to read the street names.
I actually bought a micro 4/3 camera specifically, to capture moments on our trip. As I start to take on more photography work, I figured it was time to learn a new camera. My Lumix is on the older end, GF2 to be exact, so it took some getting use to.
Still a wonderful, budget friendly purchase for micro/macro photography beginners.
Too bad, I forgot to bring the charger. So, not too many photos on this baby.
I’ll include what I did manage to capture from this trip further down.
Saving and planning for this trip was the highlight of my 2018. I used the Qapital app to help set funds aside as well as putting away 50% to 20% of every paycheck for roughly… 8 months.
My parents were kind enough to take care of flight and help with accomdations. Again, 2018 was rough towards the end and I am eternally grateful for any help.
If you are curious to see what sort of geeky places exist in Denmark, I shared my finds in another blog.
We visited thrift stores.
We visited the royal palace and garden.
We even attempted to bar hop a couple times.
But, we mostly just brunched our way through Denmark and binged watched a ton of Netflix.
Denmark is one of the most relaxing cities I’ve ever been in. Maybe it had to do with the “hygge” which is a Danish expression for cozy or comforting feeling.
Many of the stores and restaurants we visited used every nook and cranny of space to fill with people along with products. This included the upstairs attic space and basements, like when we went to Fantask Comics. I was especially impressed with how accommodating people were as each person squeezed by a stranger for a seat.
It was wonderful to have all my siblings together again.
We’re older now and going off into careers that has put some distance between us. But, we know we’ll always make an excuse to see each other again.
This trip’s success has me wondering where to go next. But for now, I’ll cherish these memories.
I can honestly say that I’m looking forward to visiting Denmark again. However, may be save a bit more so I can do some serious shopping next time.
And now, a mini gallery of what I could take with my Lumix and some iPhone images.
Beware! Buy your travel passes before stepping foot onto a train or bus. Using the phone app, you just have to swipe your phone on the check-in. Don’t forget to check-out too! It will keep charging for the full day.
You will get a fine if you don’t have a pass punched and you will have to pay it; even if you’re a foreigner which makes it just as expensive.
While Danish was the main language, I was surprised at how quick natives would change to English. You could even communicate with bits of German which I found useful at times. Plus, getting around was easier after a few days of running around.
Denmark might not be on many lists for cities to visit, but I’d suggest it as a weekend trip for anyone in the UK. The flight would be just under an hour for you.
Keep in mind that the Kroner is very strong there. So, save at least 3x the original budget.
Another note, refrigerators are on the tiny side. So, on average we were eating for lunch and dinner each day of our trip. That’s about twenty four times to the local food court. Along with smaller portion sizes in meals, so snacks with filling protein was a must.
Thank goodness for 7elevens with cheap, ready to heat meals.
What are your plans for travel in 2019?
